This invention relates to a compact, collapsible chess clock that is operable to be stored in a compact space for transport and storage while concomitantly being operable to be facilely setup into a functional chess clock for accurate timing of game movement activity and a definitive signal of a time dependent chess match winner.
Chess is a popular game played around the world between two players. Victory is usually determined when a player “checkmates” an opponent's king.
With the number of permutations of permissible moves and combinations or sequences of moves competitive chess from a neophyte to master level can be wonderfully complex. Moreover, beginning in 1883, in London, time was added as an element to the game in tournament play to add a further level of skill challenge and player differentiation. Generally speaking, if a checkmate hasn't decided the game, the player who runs out of time first forfeits a match.
Chess clocks keep track of each player's time by decrementing down during a player's turn. The more time a player takes to make an individual move, the more cumulative time elapses for the player. In tournament play an initial period of two hours is usually allocated to each player to complete forty moves. If one player does not successfully execute forty moves within the precise period of two hours or less the player forfeits automatically. After the primary two hour period a secondary period of an additional hour to execute an additional number of moves can be assigned. Time not used in a player's primary period can be added to the player's secondary period. A player utilizes no time consumption at all while an opponent is “on the clock.”
A game played with the addition of time constraints and forfeiture for failing to meet a time limitation needs an accurate and objective definition of exceeding any set time period in order of both players to radially accept forfeiture from exceeding a time limitation during play.
Chess clocks have gained in popularity for casual play. A clock not only helps players develop quick cognitive skills, but maintaining a strict time limit for games keeps the length of games to a mutually agreeable limit. Chess clocks have also gained in popularity for use in other one-on-one barad games. Players of other games use time as an element to keep a game moving and to add and additional level of skill to a game.
In the past analog and digital chess clocks have been known as illustrated, for example, by U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,539,754 and 4,062,180. Such previously known chess clocks; however, have tended to be somewhat bulky and not easily stored or for transported to a lunch or pick-up game in a park or other casual play site. It would therefore be highly desirable to provide a chess clock that could provide a two player, self-actuated chess timing function while concomitantly being compact and easily portable to enable playing a competitive game of chess in a park during lunch—for example. Moreover, it would further be desirable to provide a chess game timing unit that could be facilely set with different time parameters to accommodate different skill levels of a two player board game such as chess. In this an experienced or skill player might be assigned a shorter time period than a less skillful opponent to facilely “level the playing field.”